Quotable

Junior Ladies Free Skate

Leah Keiser

“The biggest disappointment about this program
(the free skate) was the loop because I just didn’t try it. It’s a
good learning experience because this is my first big international
competition. It definitely didn’t go the way I wanted to but it
gives me a lot to work on for next season and even going into
nationals.”

“It’s really great (training
with Ashley Wagner). I look up to all the seniors. Every time
I watch them, I see there is something I can learn from them. Ashley
provides great motivation. She is always working. Her best quality,
I mean she has everything, but her components and connection with
the audience are things I hope to learn from her.”

Hannah Miller

“I got my personal best (on the free skate) and
it’s one of the best skates I could have done. I have been training
really long and hard for this. I’m really happy it turned out how I
wanted it to. All my spins and jumps were the best they could be.”

“It’s exciting when the last jump is done and
knowing you’ve accomplished a great program.”

“It’s super great (to have won the silver medal).
It was just my goal to come here and skate my best. That put me in a
medal spot so I’m excited.”

Angela Wang

“That’s how I’ve been training so I’m glad I was
able to show that today (n the free skate). I felt really calm. I
have been working really hard on my artistry for this program and I
hope that showed.”

“I learned a lot from this competition because
it’s my first major international. I gained a lot of experience. I
learned how to stay calm when skating in a really big arena. I
definitely need to work on my short program consistency. Taking that
same feeling I had today and bringing it to the short.”

Senior Free Dance

Meryl Davis & Charlie White

Davis – “Some days you go out there and the
performance comes really easily. Some days you have to fight through
it. Today we were proud of the way we fought through it (the free
dance)and still put out a great performance. It’s days like that,
when it doesn’t come super easily, when you gain the most and learn
the most.”

White – “It was a fantastic program. Emotionally,
technically, we really put it all out there. Like Meryl said, we
both were feeling it out there. It could be any number of things.
I’m proud of the way we fought through it. It’s a great step to help
us build toward winning Worlds.”

White - “I thought I caught a glimpse of that (President
Putin watching). Everyone started applauding and I looked up
and was like, ‘Oh, ok.’”

Davis – “Someone told me earlier he was here and
I was like, ‘lalalalalala.’ I don’t want to hear about the important
people here watching.”

Adds White – “Yeah, we have a lot to worry about.
We talked about it before. This is the Olympic setting. It’s great
practice. To have the Russian president here, it really sets the
tone and helps us build toward that Olympic goal as well.”

White – “It’s something to be proud of (their
fourth straight Grand Prix Final title). These are the top
skaters in the world. They had to prove themselves at their Grand
Prix events and we had to do the same. To be able to win four years
in a row, it’s an accomplishment.”

White – “It’s sort of the halfway point of the
season. Where we go from here is really where our character is going
to show. We’re already thinking ahead.”

From the medalist press conference

Davis – "Charlie and I were really pleased with
our performance today. The ice, the atmosphere and the crowd were
fantastic. We heard (Russian President) Putin was in the audience
which is really exciting. When you hear about important people in
the audience, it’s not something you try to focus on before you
skate. But afterward we were like, ‘Oh! Putin was in the audience.
That’s cool.”

Davis – “In terms of our skate, it was solid. It
was one of those skates that nothing really came easily and we had
to fight through it. But that’s OK. It’s good to have skates like
that. It’s times like that where we feel that we grow the most.
We’ll take the feelings and lessons we learned here and build on the
rest of the season.”

White – “We talked a little bit about that (the
Olympic setting). Just being able to be in the venue and get a feel
for it was really helpful. Being able to compete and warm up and get
a feel for everything. You can’t help but turn your mind a little
bit to the Olympics. It’s everywhere, everyone’s talking about it.
Our goal is to come back and win the Olympic gold. This is just a
stepping stone. There is a long road to travel before we get here.
We’re proud of what we did today, but there are a lot more steps to
take before we can think about standing on that top step.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin Drops in on Grand Prix Final

by Alexandra Stevenson

Russian President Vladimir Putin came to Sochi Saturday
to officially open the new 30 mile Olympic railroad service between the
lower cluster of nine “ice” venues with the Alpine skiing complex of
Krasnaya Polyanaup in the mountain 30 miles away.

On the way, he chaired a meeting on the progress of
Olympic preparations in Sochi which mostly focused on traffic problems.

The train service will begin regular service next
April with a capacity of 8,500 passengers an hour. A parallel motor road
will be capable of carrying 11,500 people an hour when completed.

He then paid a visit to the “Iceberg” Skating Palace,
in time to watch to watch Meryl Davis & Charlie White win the Free Dance.

White said he knew Putin was in the audience. “I
thought I caught a glimpse of him. Everyone started applauding and I
looked up and was like, ‘Oh, Ok!’” His partner smiled when asked what she
thought of the famous spectator. Davis said, “Someone told me earlier he
was here and I was like, ‘lalalalalala.’ I don’t want to hear about the
important people here watching. I’m nervous enough without thinking that!”

White explained, “Yeah, we have a lot to worry about beforehand. We talked
about it before. This is the Olympic setting. It’s great practice. To have
the Russian president here, it really sets the tone and helps us build
toward that Olympic goal as well.”

1. Overall 189.39; 1.FD 110.19 (52.56+57.63);
Meryl Davis & Charlie White, gave a firecracker performance in the Free Dance of
the Grand Prix Final, which, had it been a speed race, it would
surely have set a record. The routine, choreographed to music from
the show “Notre Dame de Paris”, earned 110.19 points, which
increased their slight lead over the Canadian world champions, Tessa
Virtue & Scott Moir, who train with them in Canton, Michigan, to
3.56 points. The routine tells the story of Esmeralda and her tragic
love for the hunchback.

White said, “It
was a fantastic program. Emotionally, technically, we really put it
all out there.” His partner agreed. “In terms of our skate, it was
solid. It was one of those skates that nothing really came easily
and we had to fight through it. But that’s OK. It’s good to have
skates like that. It’s times like that where we feel that we grow
the most. We’ll take the feelings and lessons we learned here and
build on the rest of the season.”

White continued, “We were both were feeling it out there. It could
be any number of things. I’m proud of the way we fought through it.
It’s a great step to help us build toward winning the world title
back. It’s something to be proud of.

“These are the top skaters in the world. They had to prove
themselves at their Grand Prix events and we had to do the same. To
be able to win four years in a row, it’s an accomplishment. It’s
sort of the halfway point of the season. Where we go from here is
really where our character is going to show. We’re already thinking
ahead.”

This is Davis & White’s fourth straight Grand Prix Final title.

From their opening spin to their closing choreographed lift, they
appeared “on”, pushing themselves to the limit. The Technical Panel
gave them six of their maximum Level 4s, with only the diagonal and
the circular steps getting the lower Level 3. Only one element, the
diagonal steps, failed to receive at least one vote from the
nine-member judging panel of the maximum Grade of Execution +3. In
all, they were showered with thirty +3 Grades of Execution out of a
possible 81.

For their components, Davis & White were showered with seven 10s.
Their lowest were five 9.25s.

2. Overall 179.83; 2.FD 108.56 (51.70+56.86);
Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir,
skated immediately before their training mates and presented a very
different routine, that brought the level of seduction to a new high
on ice. Performing to the music from the well-known opera, Carmen,
they changed the tragic story somewhat, and adapted their original
interpretation shown while winning Skate Canada. This Carmen in a
dark colored dress with a deep neck line, is triumphant
at the end, shaming the loser Don Jose, who ends up a broken man.

They earned the same Levels as Davis & White, but “only” 18 +3
Grades of Execution. One thing the two teams did differently was
that Davis & White chose to do four “short” lifts whereas Virtue &
Moir executed two short and one “long” lift, as they did last
season. The two options have the same base value. Virtue & Moir’s
components included two 10.0 with a low of one 8.75.

Moir admitted, “I think it was a good performance for this time in
the season. We still have to fight for the program. It’s really
quite challenging. Our elements were a lot stronger today than they
were in both Skate Canada and in the Russian Grand Prix. We like to
win and we came here to win, but we came very close. We made major
changes in our footwork. We’d like to get Level 4, but the callers
are being hard. We need to figure out what we have to do to maximize
our points.

Virtue said she tried to put the fact that they were lying second
out of her mind. We have to focus on our own job. We can’t think
about the scores or what others are doing on the ice, or we’ll get
side-tracked. For today, we were focused on our own job, not
thinking what others are doing.”

3. Overall 170.18; 3.FD 101.48 (48.78+52.70);
Nathalie Pechalat & Fabian Bourzat, the
French European champions who train with Anjelika Krylova at the
Detroit SC in Bloomfield Hills, had the same levels as the top two
couples, and they received five +3 GoEs, for their routine to a
medley by the Rolling Stones, including, “You”, “Angie”, “Symphony
for the Devil” and “Start Me Up”.

She said, “I think we had a good performance.
It was very clean. After our first Grand Prix, (in Shanghai, China,
which they won), we changed the lifts and transitions. It’s always
like that, making changes through the season, to get higher levels
or better GoEs. We like the music and we felt the audience did to.
We heard some clapping along with us. Maybe because they are
Russian, the audiences here clap more than they do in Beijing or
Paris. We are always trying to do something different.

4. Overall 165.64; 4.FD 99.53 (50.21+49.32);
Anna Capellini & Luca Lanotte,
from Italy, who also train partly in the United States with Igor
Shpilband in Novi, also did a program to music from the Bizet’s
opera, Carmen. Cappellini said, “I guess it was probably the
cleanest skate we’ve had but I’m not sure sure if it was the
strongest. Drama is what we feel we’re good at, so we are using our
strength and portray that story. All that matters is that we are
going out and skating clean.

Her partner explained, “I think our Carmen is
more modern than Tessa and Scott’s version. Meryl and Charlie are
super strong, but Tessa & Scott have the chemistry.”

5. Overall 158.09; 6.FD 91.86 (44.83+49.03 -2);
Ekaterina Bobrova & Dmitri Soloviev, Russians who train with
Alexander Zhulin in Moscow, skated to “Man with a Harmonica” and
“Tosca”, interpreting a complex story in which she tries to rescue
him for drugs and then ends up on the street herself and he has to
pull himself together to rescue her! The Russians gained the same
Level 4’s as those above them but, in addition to having Level 3 for
their Circular Steps, their Diagonal Steps were only Level 2 with
-0.43 taken off the base value.

Soloviev also had fall and was just furious
about it. “Maybe I wanted to express my emotions a little bit too
much and was going a bit too strong. It was a really stupid fall,
out of nothing. I never, ever fall down, even in practice and now
this! Really stupid! I hit my back and it still hurts but it’s more
mental pain than physical right now. Probably, I just lost
concentration for a few seconds.” They actually got a deduction of
two points. The second was for “interruption in excess” because he
was just so devastated, he didn’t get right up and back into the
program.

Bobrova said, “Our coaches are very supportive
and we were all very disappointed, because everyone says they love
this routine and we wanted to skate our best.” They received Level 4
for five elements. The circular and diagonal steps were Level 2, and
the spin, Level 3.

6. Overall 156.36; 5.FD 92.80 (43.50+49.30);
Elena Ilinykh & Nikita Katsalapov, Russians who train with Nikolai Morosov,
interpreted music from “The Ghost”. They were very disappointed
because they won the bronze in the European championships last
January, and felt they should have placed higher in this event.

She said, “Yesterday, the low score was
unexpected. It was our best performance of the season.” He added,
“Today, we had some mistakes in the elements. We will have another
chance to skate on this Olympic ice, because our Russian
championships will be here.”

Russian Dominates Junior Ladies. Three
Americans Get Experience of their Young Lives.

The standings overall of the six Junior Ladies remained the same
after the Free Skate as they had been in the Short Program, although
two of the Americans reversed their placings in the Free Skate.
Angela Wang was judged the second best free skater and Hannah Miller
was fourth best, but each stayed in their original second (Miller)
and fourth (Wang) place.

1. Overall 179.40; 1.FS 118.50 (64.65+53.85); The winner, Russian
Elena Radionova, again
gave a technically brilliant showing, that would do well in senior
competition. Dressed in a black cat suit, she skated to "And Finally
I Love You" and "Country of Deaf", beginning with a triple Lutz to
triple toe loop which earned + 0.80 over its base value. It was a
performance which would have done well in a senior competition.

The short blonde, who wore her long hair pulled back into a platted
ponytail, opened with a triple Lutz to triple toe loop which earned
+0.80 over its base value of 10.10 points. However, both triple
flips received an “e” for wrong edge takeoff. The first, done alone,
got -0.20 removed from its base value. The second, combined with a
single loop to triple Salchow, lost -0.30. Her first spin, a change
foot combination, was Level 4 with +0.40.

At the halfway point where the 10% bonus marks click in, she pulled
off a second triple Lutz (+0.30); two separate double Axels, both
worth an extra +0.29; and a +0.80 triple loop to double toe loop.
She concluded with a +0.57 Level 3 flying change foot combination
spin; Level 4, +1.20, straight line steps and a +1.36, Level 4
layback spin which received six +3 GoEs and three +2s. Her
components went from a high of three 7.5s from one judge down to
four 6.0s for “Transitions”.

Radionova said, “I think each athlete has the same dream, to win
the Olympic gold. Since I will not be 15 till January 6, I will not
be eligible for these Olympics, but I hope to compete in future
Games. I’m looking forward to watching all the senior skaters. I
love how they hold themselves on the ice, the way they glide. I know
that what I do on the ice still looks like a kid skating. I want to
skate as effortlessly as do the senior girls.” Maybe she’ll end up
as a song-writer. She revealed, “When I do my homework, I try to
sing along and I often make up a few lines and end up with verses.”

Radionova made her international debut last season, winning the
Novice Triglav Trophy in Slovenia. This was her first season in
international junior competition and she won gold in her JrGPs in
Courchevel, France, and in Linz, Austria. She was third in the last
Russian Junior championship. In Sochi, her winning margin was 10.99
points.

2. Overall 168.41; 4.FS 109.23 (56.16+53.07);
Hannah Miller, held onto
second place by 1.01 points. Skating to “The Storm” by Balazs Havasi,
Miller, who was competing in only her fourth international event,
opened with a +0.10 triple loop to double loop. That was followed by
a triple flip to double toe loop to double loop which earned its
base value of 8.40 points. But the triple Lutz, which came next, was
saddled with an “e” for wrong edge take-off and she lost -0.70. Her
extremely well done steps were only Level 2 but earned a +3 (the
maximum GoE) and five +2s, which meant 0.86 was added to the base
value for that Level of 2.60. Her layback spin earned the maximum
Level 4 with +1.0.

Her triple flip
to double Axel sequence was set at the halfway point and earned a
total of 7.97 points. That was followed by a +0.20 triple loop.
However, the triple Salchow which followed was saddles with an arrow
for slight under-rotation and had a half point removed from its base
value. She concluded with two Level 4 spins surrounding a +0.14
double Axel. The flying camel received +0.50, and the change foot
combination got +0.86. Her component marks ranged from one 5.50 for
Transitions up to three 7.50s given by one judge.

Miller said, “I
tried really hard. I wanted to skate from the heart. I had a lot of
emotions today and I wanted to express what I felt. Now I’ll watch
the seniors. I watch how they express themselves. Their jumps are so
fluid. Beforehand, I go through my program and walk through the
jumps. I also like to warm up to my favorite music.”

3. Overall 167.40; 3.FS 109.46 (59.36+50.10);
Anna Pogorilaya, showed
she is not only developing her skill levels, she is learning to
think on her feet, overcoming an early mistake. “It was funny that I
gained more confidence after I nearly fell on the double Axel (her
first jump). The problem was, I hesitated going into it. It was
meant to be a double Axel to triple toe loop to double toe loop.”
But it became a standalone bad double Axel, and she lost a full
point from that jump’s base value of 3.30.

But she made a
good decision to add one of the missing jumps, a double toe loop, as
the third jump on her next element, which was meant as a repeat of
the same two first jumps, double Axel to triple toe loop.

She also made a
second change. “I had to switch my planned triple Lutz to double toe
loop, and do a triple toe loop as the second jump. I had to because
otherwise my technical marks would have gone right down. I had
nothing to lose. I’m very glad I overcame my fear and showed
everything I could. In both programs, I achieved a season’s best. I
have grown up. I’m not afraid anymore, and my legs are not
trembling. I even forgot about the gloomy bad weather.” (Although,
there was sun throughout the event, the climate is sub-tropical and
they seem to suffer from late afternoon storms.)

Her other
jumps, executed in the second half, were a +0.60 second triple Lutz,
a +0.40 triple Sachow, a triple flip, which had an “e” and got -0.50
removed from its base value, and a +0.20 triple loop. Her first spin
was a Level 3, base value flying sit, but the other two were Level
4, with the change foot combination receiving +0.57 over its base
value, and her final element, a layback, earning an extra 1.0. The
routine was set to music from Gounod’s “Faust”. Her components
ranged from four 7.00s down to one 5.50.

4. Overall 162.05; 2.FS 118.50 (64.65+53.85);
Angela Wang, who is
referred to as an “ice butterfly” because of her colorful costumes,
and airy jumps, performed to “Ladies in Lavender” by Nigel Hess. If
she was disappointed that the second place in the Free Skate didn’t
advance her overall standing, she didn’t let others know about it.
“What I definitely need to work on is my Short Program consistency,
taking the same feeling I had today.

“I felt really
good. That’s how I’ve been training, so I’m really glad I was able
to show that today. I felt really calm out there today. I’ve been
working real hard on my artistry for this program. I hope that
showed. I learned a lot from this competition. It’s my first major
international. I gained a lot of experience and I hope I can use
that for the Nationals.” (She has already competed at national
senior level, finishing eighth earlier this year in San Jose.) “I
definitely need to work on my Short Program consistency, taking that
same feeling I had today in the long and bringing it to the Short.”

Wang began with
a very impressive triple Lutz to triple toe loop to double toe loop
which earned a total of 12.50 points. The following triple flip
received a total of 6.00 points, the triple loop to double toe loop
got 6.90 and her triple toe loop to double Axel sequence received
6.12. Her Level 4 layback spin received an extra +0.79 over its base
value of 2.70. That took her to the half way stage.

With the bonus
marks clicking in, she executed a triple Lutz accumulating 7.30. Her
Level 4 change foot combination spin received a total of four
points. Her straight line steps gained an extra +0.64. Then came a
+0.29 double Axel, and her only negative. Her triple Salchow was
saddled with an arrow for slight under-rotation. She brought the
routine to an applause-gaining end with a Level 3, +0.14 GoE flying
camel spin.

Her components
ranged from three 7.25s down to five 6.00s. The reason she did not
advance from fourth, was that her Free Skate total was only 1.43
ahead of Pogorilaya, and 1.66 ahead of Miller. After the Short
Program, Wang had been 8.02 points behind Miller, and 6.78 behind
Pogorilaya.

5. Overall 157.74; 5.FS 108.14 (58.32+49.82);
Satoko Miyahara, who is the twice Japanese Junior champion,
performed to “The Adagio” from Romeo & Juliet. She received positive
Grades of Execution for all but two elements: the initial move of
triple Lutz to triple toe loop received an arrow for slight
under-rotation of the Lutz, which resulted in the removal of -0.30
from its base value of 8.30 points; and her eighth element, a double
Axel to triple toe loop sequence which received an arrow on the
second jump and lost -0.14 from its base value.

In addition, she
accomplished a triple flip (+0.60), a triple loop (+0.10), a base
value double Axel, a triple Lutz to two double toe loops (executed
as the 9th of the 11 moves, which earned +0.10) and a
+0.30 triple Salchow. Her first spin was a +0.36, Level 3 change
foot combination. Later she did two Level 4 spins, with the layback
receiving an extra +0.64, and the flying sit earning +0.43 over its
base value. Her steps were +0.64 and Level 3.

She said, “In the Short
Program, I was very nervous. Then, in the Free Program, I managed to
put my emotions under control. My fighting spirit actually overcame
the tensions I had beforehand. It’s the Grand Prix Final and I’m
privileged to take part in this event and it’s the Olympic venue so
I wanted to perform the best I can. I pretended it was practice in
order to not get nervous. I think one of the best elements in my
today’s performance was the opening triple-triple.) Her components
ranged from five 5.50s up to a 7.00.

6. Overall 137.44; 6.FS 90.21 (46.21+44.00);
Leah Keiser, who trains alongside U.S. champion Ashley Wagner with
veteran coach, John Nicks, opened her Free routine, set to music
from Glazunov’s “The Seasons”, with a good triple Lutz but the
triple toe loop with which it was combined received a double arrow
for under-rotation and she was forced to put her hand on the ice to
keep from falling. Nevertheless, she banked 5.50 points.

That was followed by a double Axel to triple toe loop, which earned
+0.20 over its base value of 7.40, and a Level 4 flying sit spin
which was awarded +0.14 on top of its base value of 3.00.

Then came what she described as, “The biggest disappointment for me
in this program is the loop.” She singled the jump, earning +0.49
instead of the hoped for base value of 5.10 or better. But she
treated that as a learning experience. Keiser sprung back with
another Level 4 spin, this one a change foot which earned +0.14 over
its base value, and a triple Lutz, which was set at the halfway
point and earned a total of 7 points.

The next move was planned as a double Axel to double toe loop to
double loop but the third jump became a single. Nevertheless, she
banked a total of 5.61 points. Then came a triple flip, which was
saddled with an “e” for wrong edge take-off, and a triple Salchow,
which got an arrow for slight under-rotation. She concluded with
Level 2, +0.07 straight line steps and a Level 3, +0.64 layback
spin. Her components ranged from lows of five 5.00s up to two 6.50s.

“The program definitely did not go the way I wanted it to, but it
lets me know all the things to work on for nationals, and for next
season.”

She says she learned a lot from
watching Wagner, her training mate, compete. “She is always in
contact with the audience and there is always something I can learn
from her every day. And she is always working.”

Junior Pairs a Reflection of the Seniors, with Three Russian
Qualifiers, two Canadian and a Chinese Pair

1. Overall
161.11; 1.SP 54.37 (28.86+25.51); 1.FS 106.74 (52.28+54.46);
Line Fedorova &
Maxim Miroshkin are
trained in Moscow alongside the twice world championship runnersup
and winners of the Senior GPF, Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov
with coach Vladislav Zhovnirski, who won the 1996 world junior title
with partner, Viktoria Maxiuta.

Fedorova, who
was coming up to her 15th birthday on December 30, and
Miroshkin, 18, qualified by taking second place in the JrGP in Linz,
Austria (behind Jones & Beharry) and winning the Chemnitz, Germany
JrGP. That meant they were the second qualifiers and skated their
light-hearted “Singing in the Rain” Short Program, fifth of the six
pairs.

Dressed in a
multi-colored yellow, green and blue outfits, they began with a
Level 4 double twist which earned four of the maximum +3 Grades of
Execution, with the other five judges punching in +2. Their throw
triple Salchow was good and they also received Level 4 for their
lift and straight line steps. Their solo jump was double Axel and,
like their senior training mates, their back outside death spiral
only Level 1. Their final move, the change foot combination spin was
penalized with -0.39 off the Level 3 base value because she exited
early.

He said, “It
was the best performance this season, but we still think we can
improve.” Because they were in the lead, they performed their Free
Skate, which was a tango, last. Fedorova said, “We were a bit
nervous because just before we went out on the ice, we could tell
our season’s best was much lower than the scores needed for gold
here. But, of course, when we saw our score after we’d skated, we
were delighted.”

This time
they opened with a triple twist which gained Level 3 with SEVEN of
the maximum +3 GoEs, and two +2s. Their throw triple loop gained
+1.20 over its base value but their side-by-side double Axels lost a
marginal -0.07 from its base value. After a Level 2 forward inside
death spiral which was rewarded with +0.70 Goe, they did a -0.04
double flip to double toe loop combination. Their throw triple
Salchow wobbled a bit on the landing and lost -0.70, but two lifts
and two spins received the top Level 4 with the full base value or
better.

Fedorova
said, about the ice facilities, “The ice is great and the overall
impression is very positive, but when they switched all the lights
on initially in the arena it was almost blinding (which is what
television demands). We are getting used to it.” The competitors
stays outside the cluster of nine arena and there were some
horrendous traffic jams because there is only one entrance because
of the security particularly become some of the venues are not
completed and the “roadways” are presently just muddy ground. “We’ve
been caught in some long traffic jams,” she said, although they have
been getting police escorts to keep that to a minimum.

2. Overall
155.96; 3.SP 51.34 (27.52+23.82); 2.FS 104.62 (52.96+51.66);
Vasilisa Davankova, 14,& Andrei Deputat, who will turn 20 on December 20, teamed up in 2011
and are the Russian Junior champions, who won the World Junior
championship bronze medals earlier this year. He is from Ukraine and
traveled to Moscow to look for a partner. She is from Moscow, and
followed her younger brother to the skating rink. He has since
forsaken his figure blades for hockey.

They are
coached by Sergei Dobroskokov and Sergei Rosliakov. They were the
fifth pair to qualify, having earned silver in Lake Placid JrGP and
bronze in the Croatia Cup in Zagreb and so performed their Short
Program, set to “The Godfather”, second up. They opened +0.21 double
Axels, a +0.70 throw triple Salchow, and a Level 2, +0.30 double
twist. But they lost a sliver, -0.07, on their Group 4, Level 4
lift. Their back outside death spiral was Level 3 with +0.70; their
flying change foot combination spin was Level 4 with +0.29 and they
finished with Level 2 steps which also earned +0.29. Their elements
score was second best but they were given third place just 0.49
behind the Canadians, Purdy & Marinaro, who they overtook after the
Free Skate.

They opened
their routine, set to “Once Upon a Time in Mexico”, with +0.60
triple toe loop to double toe loop jump combinations which earned an
extra +0.60. Their triple twist was Level 1 with +0.80 and their
throw triple loop earned a full point over its base value. Their
throw triple flip gained an extra +0.80, and their Level 3 back
outside death spiral and they choreographed sequence both received
an extra +0.70. Then came their only negative GoE, a minimal -0.07
on their double Axels. Their Axel lift was only Level 1 but their
Group 3 lift earned Level 4 and they finished with a Level 3 pair
combination spin. Davankova joked, “We used our magic even far away
from Hogwarts, and performed well. We were nervous about the opening
jump combination, and later the double Axel and the lift, but
finally we were able to do everything we planned. Deputat added, “Of
course we are glad! Such a big score! It’s our record. Certainly we
were nervous. We improved our technical score from 46 to more than
50! It puts us in good stead for the upcoming Russian nationals
(which will also be held in Sochi).

3. Overall
153.56; 4.SP 50.76 (26.83+23.93); 3.FS 102.80 (53.22+49.58);
Maria Vigalova, 13,& Egor Zakroev, who will turn 19 on December 31, are from Perm in the
Ural mountains. They qualified by taking bronze in Linz, Austria and
silver in Chemnitz, Germany. They performed their Short Program to
“Capone” by Ronan Hardiman, opening with a Level 3 double twist and
base value side-by-side double Axels. They also did a Level 3, +0.20
back outside death spiral.

He explained,
“We had mistakes and these mistakes were really ridiculous. We
didn’t do them at the practice sessions. It’s been jitters that
played a dirty trick on us. But the first part of the program was
really nice. We did a good throw (+0.60 triple Salchow) and spin
(Level 4 but with a very small negative, -0.09). We had hoped to
qualify for the Final, but, nevertheless, it was a surprise. We are
physically prepared to compete but we are still very nervous. We
train at the Neftyanik Sports Palace in Perm. There are wonderful
training conditions there and good coaches. We’ve invited Olga
Volozhinskaia from the United States to come work with us and she
did both our Short and Free programs.”

Their Free
Skate was set to “Symphony on a Battle Lost by Benny Richter and
Marc Terenzi,” and they opened with a +1.0 Level 3 triple twist. He
said, “Improving our Personal Best is great but there were some
issues. We want to get Level 4 in the twist. We did not have enough
speed in our (Level 3 forward inside) death spiral. We did not hold
it long enough to get the top Level. However, we avoided making
major mistakes.

They said
they supported all the competitors. “It was a shame we did not have
a competitor in the mens event but a chance to see such skaters like
Patrick Chan and Daisuke Takahashi is worth a lot!

4. Overall
149.94; 2.SP 51.83 (26.26+25.57); 5.FS 98.11 (47.77+52.34 -2);
Margaret Purdy, 17,& Michael Marinaro, 20,
the 2010 Canadian Junior champions, who are trained by Scott Rachuk
& Alison Purkiss, came in as the top qualifiers, having won gold in
Lake Placid and in the Zagreb JrGP events. That meant they skated
the Short Program, sixth and last. Performing to Puccini’s aria, “O
My Beloved Father” with her in a pink dress, they earned second
place. They made a tentative start, opening with a Level 2 double
twist, getting -0.93 removed from the base value for side-by-side
double Axels, and receiving only the “basic” level for their back
outside death spiral. However their Group 4 lift received the
maximum Level 4 with +0.36; their throw triple Salchow earned an
extra +0.40; and their steps and combination spin were both Level 4
with +0.30 and +0.50 respectively. They had only the fifth highest
element score but they earned the highest components score.

In the Free,
which was set to “The Artist” by Ludovic Bource, they began with a
Level 1, -0.30 GoE triple twist. Their triple toes got one arrow for
slight under-rotation after she fell and he messed up what was meant
to be a combination with a double toe loop. She also fell on her
double Axel, their third element. But, after those errors at the
beginning, they got back on track and everything else earned
positive GoEs, starting with a +0.60, Level 3 for their forward
inside death spiral; a +0.86, Level 4 change foot combination spin;
a +0.80 Level 4 Axel lasso lift; a +0.40 throw triple loop; a +0.60
choreographed sequence; a Group 3 +0.57 Level 4 press lift; a +0.80
throw triple Salchow; and a Level 4, +0.50 pair combination spin.

He said of
their 98.11 score, “We were trying to break 100 today, but we didn’t
get that done. But we did a lot of good things today.” She added,
“We started off rough, but in the end we pulled it together. We did
some good throws and lifts.”

5. Overall
149.20; 5.SP 50.34 (27.83+22.51); 4.FS 98.86 (53.09+45.77);
Xiaoyu Yu, 16, from
Harbin&
Yang Jin, 18, from Beijing, qualified by coming 4th in
Linz, Austria and 2nd in Zagreb. Their choreography was
done by Marina Zoueva, who set their Short Program to an unknown
violin concerto, and their Free Skate to “Die Fledermaus”.

They opened
their Short Program with +0.43 double Axels, and received positive
scores for all but their final move, the Level 4 spin which was
penalized with a slight -0.21. Their double twist and their lift also received the maximum
Level 4 with +0.30 and +0.14 GoEs. Their back outside death spiral
was a +0.10, Level 3. Their very good throw triple Salchow, gained
+1.30.

They began
their Free Skate with a sequence of two double Axels, which earned
+0.14 over the base value. Their second element, triples toes, lost
-0.70. Then came a +0.20, Level 3 back outside death spiral; a Level
4, -0.09 flying change foot combination spin; the choreographed
sequence; a Level 2, +0.70 triple twist; a +0.90 throw triple loop;
a+1.30 throw triple Salchow; a Level 4, +0.70 Lasso lift; a -0.50
Group 4 Level 3 lift and, to finish, a Level 3, +0.70 pair
combination spin.

6. Overall
145.89; 6.SP 48.11 (24.23+24.88 -1); 6.FS 97.78 (48.29+49.49);
Brittany Jones &
Ian Beharry only teamed
up in April. Jones is a 16-year old who was born in Toronto; Beharry
is 21 and was born in Scarborough. They train with Kirsty
Sargeant-Wirz. Their SP was set to “Bombay Dreams” by Andrew Lloyd
Webber, and their Free Skate to music from Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons”
from the Winter and Summer movements.

They were the
third qualifiers for Sochi, having taken gold in the JrGP in Linz,
Austria, and placing third in the Blue Swords event in Chemnitz in
Germany. With his former partner, Katherine Bobak, he was the
Canadian Junior champion and they won silver in the 2011 Jr. GPFinal
in Quebec City. Jones said, “We both had strong careers with other
partners so it was easy to adapt.”

Beharry said
after the Short Program, “I think that other than the obvious
problem in the program (she fell on an under-rotated double Axel),
everything else, we skated well. The lift (Group 4, +0.43 GoE, Level
4) was smooth. The throw (+0.90 triple Salchow) was good.” Their
double twist earned Level 2 with +0.30. Their combination spin was
+0.43 Level 4. “It’s great to be in Sochi. We are very impressed by
how big the venue is and how nice everything looks here.”

In the Free
Skate they had only one minus (-1.40) which came on their first of
11 moves, the Level 1 triple twist. For their side-by-side triple
toes, they earned +0.20, as did their throw triple loop. Their throw
triple Salchow received +0.50 over its base value, and they finished
with a Level 4 pair combination spin which gained an extra +0.36. He
said, “I think overall, it’s pretty good. We landed everything we
wanted to. There were a few shaky things but overall it was a clean
skate.” She said what they need to work on now is getting their
Levels higher, particular the back inside death spiral which was
only Level 1.